The Bridge is a re-plant, and a continual journey of daily lessons…I thought this was a great post from Jonathan Herron: church planter in Kent, OH

6 Months into a Church Plant: What I’ve Learned

1. Vision leaks. Every week.
2. Integrity and preaching are all you have going for you at the beginning.
3. Sin and Jesus make sense to college students.
4. Authority cannot be assumed; it must be earned over time.
5. When Christian leaders partner instead of compete, the Kingdom is advanced (thank you 707 and Navigators!)
6. Love wins.
7. Money helps.
8. Dream big.
9. Criticize by creating.
10. Blogging is revolutionizing church planting.
11. Read widely.
12. Don’t be afraid to call your volunteers to high standards.
13. If your church wants to grow, the lead pastor must move from being a generalist in ministry to a specialist in ministry.
14. I must say “no” to many things and “yes” to few things.
15. The Book of Philippians is a fundraising letter written from a church planter to other churches. It’s biblical to ask other churches to partner with you in advancing the Gospel.
16. My family always trumps the church.
17. Pugs are great conversation starters.
18. Simplify overhead; Starbucks is my office for meetings.
19. You must balance being both missional and monastic.
20. Launching a church and adopting a newborn the exact same week is not for the weak of heart.
21. Podcast your messages.
22. Love widely.
23. When I take my day off, my messages are funnier and my head is clearer.
24. Pray or die.
25. Signing on to leadership means signing up for confrontations.
26. Leaders define the mission and defend the mission.
27. Your deepest valley sets the stage for the biggest miracle.
28. Be interested, not interesting.
29. Stop comparing yourself. In Jesus’ words, “What is that to you?”
30. 24 is the best show on television.
31. Be transparent.
32. Don’t sell-out on the vision God has given you.
33. Word-of-mouth is golden.
34. Over-communicate. People forget.
35. Don’t waste your life.
36. Always cut costs, but never cut quality.
37. If you think you’ve discovered something new, you’re probably a heretic.
38. Remember, the Old Testament prophets embraced sarcasm.
39. Write in pen, not pencil. Be confident in your decisions.
40. Jesus uses jacked-up punks to change the world